We visited the Zoo!

We went to the Zoo! But first, we had a simple of wanton soup noodle at my favourite local shop - 沙县小吃. The cold this morning was freezing and the warmth of the wanton soup was just what I needed. As the zoo was quite far from our hotel, we opt for the convenience of a cab and eagerly made our way there.

We were greeted by this huge park with a safari concept where many of the animals were wondering freely around the park. However it was segregate into 2 zones, the safari zone and the normal zoo zone. However, t he safari zone is only accessible if you drive your own vehicle. As we did not have a vehicle, we took the zoo tram around the safari zone and it was cool to see many of the animals up close. The zoo also have a special lodging section where you get to spend the night at the zoo. We hear the red pandas might visit you if you are lucky. This is something that we would definitely want to experience the next time we are here. We then roam around the rest of the zoo. The place has a couple of restaurants but the food is abit pricy as it's a tourist attraction. There is a even a made made beach in the area which we didn't explore as the weather was too cold. If I were to compare it to the Singapore zoo, it definitely had a lot more animals here and  it's a lot more spacious. But I think that the Singapore zoo still edge out abit as it’s more well maintained and informative. 

In less touristy cities, public transportation may not be as readily available to popular attractions. We found ourselves walking a considerable distance to reach the nearest bus stop for our journey back to the city center. Back in the city, we stumbled on a bakery 鲍师傅 with long queues, and decided to get some pastries to try out. It was surprising good and I wish I had more time to try the many different selections that they offer. Took a short river walk to look at the night view and had buffet dinner at a Japanese restaurant (菜菜子) It had a good japanese ambience, sashimi was fresh, overall a good dinner.

We had pastries from 鲍师傅!

A walk in the park and Historic Industrial District

We started Day 2 by taking a local bus and walked a short distance to savor a beloved local delicacy - 阿达鱼汤. The broth boasted a rich flavor with a subtle hint of fishiness (No issue for me). You can choose to order either a plain bowl of noodle with the broth or customize it with the option to add a variety of toppings such as tender meats or succulent prawns. I went for the prawns while J got the meat option. Overall, it was a nice and flavorful meal.

We then took a walk to try out the new MRT system. It had been constructed just 1-2 years prior. Surprisingly, it was rather empty. I suppose it was because it was off-peak and most residents prefer using motor scooters to get around. The train carriage we boarded was equipped with a massive translucent TV screen on the window, giving it a futuristic feel reminiscent of being in a spaceship! However, J was not amused.

 -_-“ 

We alight at 唐闸公园 station and had to cut across this big park to get to the old industrial city (唐杂古镇). It was a very nice park and we would have like to spend more time in there. While walking through the park, we stumble upon a flower exhibition. Unfortunately we were abit too late as the flowers were in full bloom just a couple of days earlier. Nevertheless we managed to capture the picturesque sights that the park had to offer.

 

After exiting the park, we walked further toward the old city (唐杂古镇). This part of the old city was industrialize in the early 1900s and it represents the economic activity of that time with it's location as a port for many cargo barges. It’s has since been repurpose as a more touristy area. We wonder into an area call the "1895 Art Zone" which was supposedly an area with a vibrate cafe scene. However due to the Covid pandemic in 2019/2020, it resulted in most of the shops/café to be closed down and is now mostly abandoned. Walking round this area has a eerie feel of an abandoned town since 1895 (aptly named). 

It was a long day of walking and we decided to take a bus back to mall area nearby our hotel. We sat at a nice café to rest and chill and found a surprised tenant in there that I affectionately named 胖宝 (Fat Treasure) 

Ended the day with some delicious tea.